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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Vincent Whelan

Ronan O'Gara teases Tommy Bowe over Ireland AM career and how he has 'six people doing his hair for him'

Ronan O'Gara poked fun at his former international teammate Tommy Bowe's new career while making a guest appearance on Ireland AM.

While ROG has embarked on a globetrotting coaching career since hanging up his boots, Bowe is now a mainstay of morning television.

The Munster legend joked that such a showbiz role meant Bowe is now living a much more pampered life than the cut and thrust of his days in professional rugby.

Bowe's co-host Muireann O'Connell initially joked that O'Gara had been hastily fixing his hair before they began their segment via Skype.

The fly-half legend was in good humour (Virgin Media)

To which O'Gara: "Yeah I don't have six people inside in Ireland AM looking after me!"

Bowe then replied "Hey times change" with a smile as the three of them laughed it up.

The primary reason the La Rochelle coach appeared on the show was to publicise Aviva's Mini Rugby Festivals in the Aviva Stadium in April.

Naturally they also reflected on Ireland's Six Nations campaign.

The 45-year-old said that Andy Farrell deserves time and space to keep building towards France 2023 after an encouraging tournament.

Farrell and his players will head to New Zealand for a three Test, five game tour in the summer.

O'Gara lists the areas where the head coach will look to add crucial depth and where he must identify the pecking order of his out-halves behind Johnny Sexton with the World Cup in mind.

But what he sees is a happy camp and one that has the ability to improve still further.

“The main priority is just keep adding," said O'Gara. "Keep adding.

"Sometimes the mentality with Irish people is that they are looking to pick holes or presume there would be a big fall but that’s not necessarily the case. Just leave them off.

At the launch of this year’s Aviva Mini Rugby Festivals in Aviva Stadium (©INPHO/Dan Sheridan)

"They’re in good form, they have momentum, there is competition for places, the dynamic seems good.

"They are allowed have a happy camp, that exists in sport. So what you want as the head coach is competition for places and they have that in probably two-thirds of the case.

“Two-thirds is probably a bit harsh. They have it in most positions but with a few notable exceptions, maybe.

"It’s not that the competition for places isn’t there, just when you have someone like Tadhg Furlong he is very difficult to replace.

"Johnny in current form is difficult to replace but that’s probably with an asterisk too, that the guys looking to take his place are completely 'under-rugbyed'.

"It’s a position where you get better with minutes and experience and experience in big games but they haven’t got that.

"Poor old Joey has been riddled with injury and then with a Six Nations title on the line Johnny is the number one 10, so he’s not just going to be giving up easy minutes to someone else when the team plays better when the best out-half is on the pitch,

"The nearer you get to Rugby World Cup, or from now on, there will be a focus on Ireland needing to establish who their number two and three out-half is.”

Pictured is Legendary Irish & Munster Rugby player and current La Rochelle Head Coach Ronan O’Gara at the launch of this year’s Aviva Mini Rugby Festivals in Aviva Stadium.

Six camps, with over 2,000 participants, are set to take place across the country. Four provincial festivals will take place in April, before the National Festival takes places at Aviva Stadium, the Home of Irish Rugby, in May.

To learn more about Aviva Mini Rugby Festivals, please visit https://www.aviva.ie/sponsorship/irfu/minirugby/

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